Digital Democracy in Ireland

1. Digital Democracy in Ireland Are ICTs Empowering Citizens or Re-enforcing Elites? Seminar Presentation 28 May 2002 Simon Nugent, Visiting Research Fellow Policy Institute, Trinity College,

2. 40 minutes to: • Define the issue • Set out international context • Critique Ireland’s performance • Identify dilemmas • Propose policy initiatives

3. The context - democracy in Ireland • Voter turnout declining • Rise of single issue and protest organisations • The personal touch – the human interaction & clientilism • Age profile, skills, connectivity and dispersion

4. The context - internet usage44% of Irish adults have home internet accessNeilson net ratings 2002 as cited by ODTR

5. Digital democracy – bringing participation on-line • Citizens researching and expressing views • Public servants consulting • Elected representatives developing and justifiying policies • Legislatures publishing • Pressure groups campaigning • Parties marketing…. • (Does not include off-line Electronic Voting)

6. The International Context

7. Growing theme internationally • Explicit government policies being formulated • EU & OECD research theme • Rapidly emerging academic field • Many pilot projects in other countries at national and local level • Impact highly visible in emerging democracies

8. Issues arising in the debate around the world • Is this just another “E” trip? • As social capital wanes can ICTs “save society”? • How ICTs should change democracy depends on where you sit in the policy process. • Will power be redistributed? • Will exclusion increase? • Will you get “better democracy”?

9. Practical experience around the world • Many experiments - not too much mainstreaming • More successful initiatives at city/municipality rather than national level? • Much Edemocracy rhetoric turns out to be Egovernment (Eservices) in reality

10. Policy and Actors in Ireland

11. Explicit policy in Ireland? • No published commitment to digital democracy at a strategic level • The term “Edemocracy” does arise in the cases of: • Evoting (though in reality this is purely a mechanical issue so far) • Houses of the Oireachtas (Parliament) which has an Edemocracy Unit • Eplanning initiative • Election 2002 Party manifestos silent – except Labour: “Under our leadership the public sector in Ireland will drive forward the information society to create a new model of democratic access and openness for an information age”

12. An Taoiseach (Prime Minister): • First explicit statement on the subject: “… we are improving the connection between the Government and the citizen. In the new context the potential for edemocracy opens up new possibilities for interaction with the citizen. While we are only at the early stages the potential for achievment in enormous” Irish Times interview 15 May 2002

13. A review of utilisation by certain actors in the democratic sphere in Ireland

14. 1. Public service • Substantial amounts of public information web-published (but agency strategies vary widely) • Primary focus on citizens as consumers or customers (Eservices) • Very little public consultation on-line • Still “Faceless bureaucracy” – hard to navigate/understand who is responsble for what. • Little proactive dissemination – almost no email alert services offered • No evidence of conscious democratic strategy?

16. 2. Political Parties& 3. Politicians • Era of experimentation – May 2002 first national election of the mass internet era • Emphasis almost exclusively on marketing • Little listening, recruiting, fund raising, narrow casting… • Some politicians made efforts to be interactive – notably Margaret Cox:

18. 4. NGOs & 5. Campaigns • Traditional NGOs including social partners – slow adopters • Little evidence of use of sites to increase member engagement? • Members areas an emerging trend • Ad hoc and single issue campaigns proving much more flexible – for example:

19. Case study:IrelandOffline, an “eliterate” campaign • Background • A few characteristics: • Government and regulator’s actions, lobby meeting reports, TDs’ commitments, Dail debates, media articles, members’ direct experience, gossip etc. published on the web and analysed rapidly • Insider informants contribute anonymously • Certain media monitor the lobby’s activity • Group work undertaken virtually…. • 19,000 member contributions to the Bulletin Board in 12 months

22. 6. Parliaments & 7. Local Authorities • Houses of the Oireachtas – best Parliamentary site in Europe (Politics On Line survey July 2001) • Uing ICTs to fulfill constitutional mandate to “Meet in Public” • Prompt publishing and accessible archives • Contacting “my representatives” • Scrutiny of the actions of the elected • In general, local authorities offer very little in this respect

23. 8. Citizens • 44% have home access (ODTR 2002) • Very little data on civic involvement in Ireland • Ennis experience of Ecitizenship very limited • Pointers to any Irish research here would be very welcome And abroad? • 1 in 3 Danish internet users want to participate in edemocracy “Den Digitale Border” Survey Spring 2002

24. US - The rise of the E-Citizen? • “42 million Americans have used Government websites to research public policy issues • 23 Million Americans have used the internet to send comments to public officials about policy choices. • 14 million have used government websites to gather information to help them decide how to cast their votes. • 13 million have participated in on-line lobbying campaigns.” “Pew Internet and American Life Project April 2002

25. Dilemmas and Solutions

26. Is this a public policy dilemma? Whether we like it or not technology and access to technology are changing the way that democracy operates in Ireland This can be either a good or a bad thing Public policy makers and practioners have the power to influence how things work out depending on how they act

27. What are the impediments encountered by the generality of actors in using ICTs more? • Gaps in terms of strategic commitment, management support & IT literacy • Shortages of resources – financial and human • Inertia/resistance to change • Role of vested interests • Scepticicism re demand (and from whom?) • Lack of feedback…

28. The Digital Divide • “Pay per view” internet connectivity the norm in Ireland (no flat rate/always on access for home users) • Public access points – popular but very limited • New delivery technologies (Digital TV, 3G mobile) unproven • The skills divide re-enforces connectivity disadvantage • Generational, gender and urban/rural divides are all re-enforced by ICT access

29. So – Empowering or Elitist? • Technology redistributes power • The beneficiaries of redistribution are: • The net savvy • The connectivity and bandwidth rich • Those with a mix of political and tech skills • Those who believe their participation might make a difference…. • Winners: young urban middle class males

30. What are the drivers of change? • “Digital inclusion is a social imperative and a duty of the welfare state” Erkki Liikanen 2 May 2002 • In the context of declining civic participation complacency is dangerous • At least a cohort of citizens will demand better on-line democratic access • Greater participation ought lead to better (and more widely accepted) policy outcomes leading, ultimately, to a stronger and more competitive society

31. Towards an explicit digital democracy strategy: 1. Redefine affordable internet access as a civic/democratic right as well as an economic imperative 2. Raise citizens expectations by explicitly defining their rights to information and participation in on-line terms • Define a role for the state in promoting “digital activism” as a new form of civic engagement.

32. A sample of practical steps that might be taken: • Promulgate a “Charter for Digital Citizenship” • Legislate for transparency – better governance (especially at local level) • Address costs of connectivity and hardware • Work through civil society • Proactively engage parliamentarians, senior public service managers and others • Mesh with SMI (public sector reform programme) and Egovernment strategies • Designate Cabinet level champion

33. Some questions: • What are the key obstacles to rolling out digital democracy initiatives? • Are the policies and actions which I have proposed realistic? • What else ought the state and local authorities be doing to foster on-line civic engagement?

34. I would welcome your feedback and any questions Simon Nugent nugents@tcd.ie http://www.policyinstitute.tcd.ie